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Merkel brings German business leaders to China

The world is changing fast and so are allegiances.

She knows where the wind is blowing.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, right, and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, left, review an honor guard during a welcome ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China Monday, July 7, 2014. Photo By Andy Wong/AP

BEIJING (AP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel met the Chinese premier Monday and hailed ties between the two sides as she led a large business delegation on a visit to promote trade with the Asian economic giant.

Merkel met Premier Li Keqiang at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing in the morning and expressed an interest in the development of China's inland areas. Merkel, who is on her seventh visit to China as chancellor, had landed Sunday in the southwestern city of Chengdu.

"I came to understand this yesterday in Chengdu, where I felt the vitality of this western Chinese city. I saw that China's development is not only limited to coastal areas but also taking place in the west," Merkel said in opening remarks, before reporters were ushered out of the room. "I'm looking forward to engaging in deep discussions."